I just finished reading Steve Job's biography by Walter Isaacson which I highly recommend. I like top 10 lists so I compiled the biggest lessons I took away from his impressive accomplishments: 1. Put Design First Most companies design around engineering constraints. At Apple, design was first, like designing the computer case first and having engineering make the components fit. I thought of the many times I’ve heard designers get pushback on their designs because of “feasibility issues”. If we’re going to create great products, let’s rise up to the challenge of figuring out how to implement the best designs we can think of with a can-do attitude. 2. Put Products Before Profits Steve Jobs’ describes his passion as “to build an enduring company where people were motivated to make great products. Everything else was secondary.” There are numerous examples where Apple put products befo...
This article was first published on LinkedIn . Quincy Jones was arguably the most influential and successful music producer of our generation. When he passed away in 2024, he left an indelible mark on the music, film, and television industries—one that will likely never be rivaled. His career spanned multiple musical generations and genres, and he collaborated with some of the greatest artists of all time, including Duke Ellington, Sarah Vaughan, Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, and Michael Jackson. Along the way, he amassed an astonishing 28 Grammy Awards, solidifying his place as a true legend. Beyond his musical genius, Quincy Jones was a leader whose legacy offers valuable lessons for anyone seeking to inspire, innovate, and excel. Here are four of the most impactful leadership lessons we can learn from him. ...
What is horizon planning? At Intuit, we aspire to deliver best-we-can-be results in the current period for employees, customers and shareholders, while building the foundation for a stronger future – a concept we call “True North.” Horizon planning is a key set of principles we employ to balance our short- and long-term investments. Our horizon planning principles are based on Geoffrey Moore’s Harvard Business Review article, “ To Succeed in the Long Term, Focus on the Middle Term .” We use these principles to divide our offering portfolio into three stages: Horizon 1 – Our established offerings that deliver most of our current revenue, such as like QuickBooks and TurboTax . Horizon 2 – Our fast-growing emerging offerings, such as like Intuit Online Payroll and GoPayment . Horizon 3 – Our experiments that form our pipeline of potential new businesses. Visit Intuit Labs to check out some of our latest e...